Review of Velvet Goldmine (1998) by Private U — 04 Oct 2008

The problem with this movie was Myers' performance, and he was the centerpiece around which all else revolved. Around which the stories of the other characters are brought to light. He did not possess the necessary charisma, among other things. He could not fill or own the role, rather he wore it cheaply, and often unconvincingly. Between his ineffectual and two dimensional performance and the mostly crappy music made for the film, (which was also badly sung) the allusions to Bowie et. al. seemed almost comic and too obvious most of the time. Ewen McGregor's rendition of his part though... was awesome. He brought sincerity and depth to his role. Watching him and Myers, one couldn't help but see how much more convincing and interesting "Slade" could have been, had the part been performed by someone who understood it and was possessed of some intensity.

The direction was... interesting. I'm not sure what to make of it. Almost seemed askew on the genre, but not necessarily in an unpleasing way.